


Poor Life Choices

by TheGirlWhoHeldOn



Series: Poor Life Choices [1]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Stripper/Exotic Dancer, Anxiety, Bachelorette Party, Bisexual Dean, Bus, College Student Castiel, Coming Out, Demisexual Castiel, Demisexuality, Dysfunctional Family, Embarrassment, F/F, F/M, Family Drama, Friendship, M/M, Sisters, Stripper Dean, Strippers & Strip Clubs, everyone's either a stripper or castiel's friend
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-16
Updated: 2015-02-16
Packaged: 2018-03-13 04:12:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,888
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3367364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGirlWhoHeldOn/pseuds/TheGirlWhoHeldOn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Anna convinces Castiel to go to her bachelorette party, he doesn't think things can get any worse...until he falls into a man's lap on the bus.</p><p>FEATURING: The Novak sisters, Uriel as Castiel's BFF, all the ladies and stripper Dean. It's a wonderful life (or is it?)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Poor Life Choices

**Author's Note:**

> Three things:
> 
> 1) THIS ACTUALLY HAPPENED TO ME. Not the handsome stripper part, but the falling into a guy's lap thing. I couldn't stop laughing. Talk about embarrassing.
> 
> 2) We always see the Novak brothers, so I decided to change things up. Also, I brought some rather hated characters and tried to appeal to their good side. This was a lot of fun.
> 
> 3) I have to say, there is talk about a bad coming out experience and Castiel has some self-loathing. If this is not for you, don't read okay? I don't want anyone triggered.

“No, Anna.”

 _“Aww c’mon Cas.”_ Anna’s airy voice begged from the other end of the phone. Even though she was pleading, she didn’t sound like it. She sounded confident, happy. Ecstatic even. Castiel could hardly blame her. Her bachelorette party was that night after all.

“As… _fun_ as the evening would be, I would much rather study for my midterms tonight.”

He was prepared for it too. He had all of his books and notes in the bag on his back and in the tote bag he was holding. This made it difficult to balance on the crowded bus, but he made due as much as he could. He hoped holding onto the yellow bar of the vehicle with all of his might and planting his feet firmly onto the ground would be enough.

_“They’re two weeks away! Live a little.”_

Castiel was honestly torn. His sister, for whatever reason, was trying to convince him into going to her little party. He had said yes three weeks ago, when it was far away and easily forgotten. Then, she had to remind him it was coming up.

He almost immediately retracted his assent.

She obviously didn’t react too well to this.

“ _I’m the bride. I’m only doing this once.”_

“You hope. You do realize many marriages end in divorce. One in four I believe the statistic was.” His obvious attempt the derail the subject didn’t work in his favor.

 _“Fine then. I’m_ hoping _I’m only going to have to do this once. And I want you there the_ one _time I’m doing this. C’mon. Pleeeeeeaaaassseee—“_

“Anna! I thought you were the one sibling who supported my dislike of parties. Despite the fact that you liked to attend them yourself, you still understood. And you even helped me avoid them. So why do you insist on this now?”

For many years she was the only one in his family that stood by him. Hester, for example, was a bit too narrow-minded to grasp why he acted the way he did, and Rachel was entirely too young to support him. Hannah tried for many years, and eventually did succeed when they became adults.

Anna was the first to break through his shell though. For those difficult years in his life, he only had her. That had made them the best of friends and the closest of confidantes.

So why was she trying to convince him to go into a situation that she _knew_ would make him uncomfortable?

“Castiel, of course I support you. I always have and always will. And you support me in any way you can. I know this is asking a lot of you…but I _really_ want you to be there with me. Nothing will happen. I promise. I just…You’re my best friend. This is important to me.”

 _That was a cheap shot,_ Castiel couldn’t help thinking.

His next thought was, _Oh shit._

He sighed over the phone, a bit too overdramatically, and grudgingly whispered, “Fine.”

Anna squealed.

“ _Oh thank you, thank you so much! I promise you don’t have to stay too long. Just a few drinks, okay? I’m sure you’ll enjoy yourself. Apparently Jo is bringing us to the best place in town, and I heard the guys are really hunky there._ ” Over the line, she chuckled. The last sentence wasn’t pointed, more of an aside then an actual plan.

“I wouldn’t know,” he pointed out. Then, with a sudden flashback of the last time they all went to a strip club, Castiel found himself muttering, “An I’m not getting a lap dance. Neither Jo or you will deter that.”

 _“I wouldn’t do that to you. I know you’re not into that. But I will treat you to a drink.”_ Anna said. Her tone was soft. It was the indicator that she realized that oh yes, she was the older sister. She had to make sure her siblings were happy. And if the lack of a lap dance would make Cas happy, then…

“Sounds good. Text me the address to this den of iniquity and I shall be there for…?”

 _“Eight. Again, thank you so much! You’re the best brother ever._ ” She was excited again. The sound of it made Castiel give a small smile, despite himself.

“I’m your only brother.”

Anna laughed one more time, before bidding Castiel a good day and hanging up the phone. Leaving him to stew in his poor life choices.

 _That was an idiotic thing to do._ He thought, so very matter-of-factly. It was a matter of fact. He knew the evening would be made up of ups and downs, but mostly downs. He’d see his sister, and make her happy. That was a plus. He would have to deal with all of her friends and partly naked people. That was definitely a down.

Castiel didn’t mind a good time. In fact, he enjoyed occasionally having a beer with Anna or some of his college friends. However, he only enjoyed doing it when they were at someone’s almost empty apartment. Or sneaking around in the library, as his cousin Gabriel has successfully done with him once or twice. Truth be told, after the fifth ancient tome he had been studying, it had been needed.

But crowds? And lights and chatter and dancing? It wasn’t for him. It mostly gave him headaches and made him panic. Especially places where bodies were naked or people were kissing.

Castiel actually sometimes enjoyed that kind of thing, but…not with strangers. Not with people he barely knew. Not sweaty grinding bodies and furious kissing.

He enjoyed holding someone’s hand. The way his lover’s eyes would light up at something, made him happy. He liked to hold someone he loves in his arms, and if he became close enough liked to kiss and touch.

That was probably why he hadn’t had that many partners. They didn’t like to stay with him for too long if he didn’t offer what they wanted.

That was fine for Castiel. Any upset he felt about these relationships coming to an end was usually soothed not too long after. Anna offered hugs, Rachel offered laughs, Hanna offered wisdom, and Gabriel usually offered sweets. They were quite understanding of it all, which…He understood he was blessed. Not many people even knew demisexuality existed, let alone accepted it.

So he could do this one thing for Anna. While he didn’t particularly like it, he liked her. She continuously made him happy, so that was the least he could do for—

His inner monologue was cut short.

The bus started to swerve, turning a corner into the bus depot. His hand tightened on the bar he was holding as he felt his balance slip away. He tried to move his body in a way to counteract the sudden change of direction and movement. Thankfully his body was able to handle the fight against gravity. It moved in just the right way to avoid falling over.

When the bus righted itself, Castiel breathed a sigh of relief. His balance was wobbly at best, and his fingers were turning white from his death grip on the pole, but everything was all right. No falling, stumbling or embarrassing situations. Perfect.

Of course he spoke to soon.

While letting himself fall into a false sense of security, he hadn’t realized there were two turns at this depot. Almost like an eight. So by the time he thought the worst was over, he felt himself falling over. This time gripping the pole and moving his hip from side to side wouldn’t work. Neither would him praying for dear life.

He went down pretty hard. The realization that he was in fact falling didn’t even have time to settle in before he was on his buttocks. But instead of hitting the gross floor of the bus, he hit something decidedly… _softer_.

A horrible feeling engulfed him as he sat there. Before he could wallow in it, he turned his head so quickly that he almost felt whiplash.

A face was suddenly _very_ close to his.

It was a nice face. Symmetrical and whatnot. His sister would be poking him and making little noises if they randomly saw the man on an outing. And his eyes were…very nice. A light shade of green. Like the grass when spring finally arrives.

“Hi there.”

Castiel felt himself freeze.

Castiel didn’t swear often, especially considering how much his mother and Hester hated it, but he was very much considering it then. Not at the man of course. It’s not as if he asked for a lapful of Castiel when he got on the bus. But perhaps at himself? The bus driver? The people who thought making two turns in a row were a fabulous idea?

“My stop is next buddy.”

Castiel train of thought crashed and he scrambled to get up as fast as he could. He jumped to his feet much more gracefully then he did going down. The bus was still moving, so he grabbed the nearest bar with both of his hands and tried to breathe.

With his feet planted firmly on the ground, he finally took the time to slightly turn and look at the man.

He was grinning, with his hands in his leather jacket and his posture relaxed. He seemed very calm. Maybe he dealt with people falling into his lap every day.

Castiel’s head tilted and he frowned slightly. How could he be so nonchalant?

“My apologies.” Castiel said gruffly, staring the man down. Usually people backed off after that, and went to go on their phones or look away.

This man did neither. Instead he just shrugged and said, “A nice-looking guy just fell into my lap. Don’t say sorry man.”

Castiel opened his mouth, not exactly sure of what he was going to say, when the doors a few feet from him opened. People began to get up from their seats, rushing to get out. Knowing what was coming, and slightly terrified of it, Castiel dashed off the bus as quickly as he was capable.

He got off just in time. As soon as he stepped off and shuffled out of the way, people began to pile out.

Normally Castiel would be running away, trying to get out of the station and out of people’s ways, but he lingered. Well, more like shuffled away from all the chaos. He went to the farthest wall of the bus station and stood against it. He tried to breathe deeply.

He wasn’t afraid of crowds exactly. He actually liked people. Human beings were as complex and beautiful as the scrolls he studied. He just…disliked not being able to breathe. To have a crowd of them surrounding him and choking off his air supply. The single-mindedness of everyone and how they were willing to do anything to get where they needed to go, and would trample anyone that got in their way.

He knew it was all in his head. That didn’t mean it scared him any less.

As he stood there, he somehow was able to single out a person. The green-eyed man. Don’t ask Castiel how, he had no idea how he _knew_ it was him. He just seemed to have an aura, a presence that made itself known.

The man stood there in the crowd, and stopped in his tracks in the middle of the bus platform. Instead of getting trampled like Castiel feared, he just stood there. Upright and unharmed. People seemed to notice the aura too, and moved around to avoid it. That was…cool.

The man looked around for a second, twisting his head this way and that, until he looked Castiel’s way. When he noticed him, he grinned and made his way through the crowd. Headed straight towards him.

Castiel couldn’t help but frown. He was still frowning when the man got up to him. The green-eyed man was still grinning (doesn’t his face start to ache?).

“Hello again.” Castiel grumbled.

“Hi. You dropped your bag when you ran away from me. I don’t know if I should be offended or not.” The man laughed, lifting the hand that still had the bag in it.

Castiel looked down at his own hands. He did drop his bag. Huh.

“Thank you for returning it to me,” Castiel said, reaching for the bag, “And there is no need to be offended. I don’t…swing that way.” To be fair, he didn’t. While he has had dates with many genders and people, he has only had sexual encounters with three of them. And that was only after several months of courting.

This man seemed nice. But Castiel refused to kid himself. His sexuality wasn’t normal, and it was hard on actively sexual people. He couldn’t put this man, or himself, through that again.

So he told the man he didn’t swing that way.

He took it pretty well. His grin dropped a little, but he still kept up his happy demeanor. “Cool, man. I should…head.”

“Yes…thank you once again.” Honestly the man deserved more then a thank you; there was thousands of dollars worth of books in that bag.

“No problem. See you around.” The man gave a small smile, before turning away and blending into the crowd. It seemed he could control that aura of his.

Castiel waited until the bus stop was empty before he began walking again. He couldn’t seem to shake the sudden lousiness he felt.

*

Uriel was laughing. Which wasn’t unusual. If he wasn’t laughing or giving faux stern faces to the people around him, then you knew something was wrong.

Normally, Castiel would be happy to hear his laugh. Possibly crack a little smile at it even. But not this time. Not over this subject.

“It wasn’t _that_ funny Uriel.” Castiel grumbled, looking at the bus floor. He was on the bus for the second time that day. Thankfully there were plenty of seats. Unfortunately, he couldn’t enjoy it as much as he would like to.

“C’mon Cas. You know that’s hilarious.” The man laughed beside him, giving a little nudge to his friend’s side. Castiel just side-eyed him.

“Seriously. Who falls into a guy’s lap?”

“Me, apparently.”

That made Uriel laugh harder.

Castiel waited patiently for the man to quiet. When he did, Castiel said, “He was a kind enough man. When I dropped my bag, he brought it back to me.”

Uriel tilted his head. “You mean people still actually do that?”

“They do. At least, he did.”

“Fascinating. Which bag?” Uriel had seen the amount of bags his roommate had had earlier.

“The one that had most of my school books in it.”

The other man whistled. “Thank God you didn’t lose those.”

“You don’t believe in God.” Castiel pointed out, looking through the bus windows. He’d probably have to get off quite soon. He didn’t know exactly where, but he had a vague idea. He had been to the coffee shop where he was meeting his sisters before, but not often enough to have the route committed to memory. Hopefully he’d remember when he got there.

“It’s just an expression.” Castiel wasn’t looking, but he knew Uriel was rolling his eyes.

“I know. I’m just pointing it out.”

“You just hate it when I don’t ‘respect’ Him.”

“No. What I don’t like is you using language that you don’t understand or care for.”

“We’ve had this argument before, Cas.” Uriel said with a hint of warning in his voice. They both knew an argument was coming if they didn’t stop. Not one full of mean-spirited words or punches. Thankfully they were past that. But one full of debate and getting nowhere would definitely take place.

Knowing this, Castiel just sighed and asked how Uriel was doing on one of his college papers. They didn’t have the same major. Uriel was into Political Science and Castiel was into ‘dusty old books’. But they were still roommates, and had one or two classes together when they were freshmen.

Despite themselves, they somehow became friends. Uriel was a funny man, and Castiel liked to laugh. They both liked to debate anything and everything under the sun. Religion was the one subject that they couldn’t talk about with clear heads. They respected each other and in some ways understood each other. Most importantly, they worked together as roommates.

Castiel could easily say he was the brother he never had. Uriel would say the same, if he didn’t have so many already.

For the rest of the bus ride, Uriel talked about his paper, the cute girl in his class, and his silly teacher. Castiel in turn talked about his own paper and Anna’s betrothed.

“How you feeling?” Uriel asked, after they found themselves falling into silence.

Castiel was looking out the window, and determined that it was almost time to depart. “I’m fine.”

“Not what I meant. Looking forward to the party?” Uriel asked. He was frowning slightly. It betrayed his concern. He rarely felt, or showed that he felt, something so deep. Only Castiel and Uriel’s close family members had the chance to view such expressions on his face. Castiel felt privileged.

“Am I ever?” Castiel questioned back.

“True enough. Call me if you need anything.”

“I’ll be fine. It’s just a small party. I’ll leave within the hour if I can help it. Then I shall see you at home?”

“If I’m not too drunk after my own party.” Uriel grinned. The concern was gone. He knew Castiel enough to know that he knew his own limits. And if he said he’d be fine, then he would be.

Castiel smiled in return. “Enjoy yourself. I believe this is my stop.” When the bus came to a stop, he got up out of his seat and headed towards the doors.

As he exited, he heard Uriel call behind him, “Have a good one. Don’t fall on any other man’s laps!” He was laughing again.

Castiel was able to get up the middle finger just before the bus left.

*

“Cas! I can’t believe you actually came!” Rachel smiled, getting up from her seat. She was always the most excited to see him. It made sense; he was the older brother that spoiled her to the best of his abilities when they were younger. Which meant he gave her snacks when he wasn’t supposed to and told her grown up secrets that Hester wouldn’t.

They hugged briefly, and then Castiel turned to his other sisters. Hannah smiled from her seat beside Rachel and gave a little wave, which Castiel returned. Anna sat there with a giant smile, and patted the seat beside her. He instantly noticed Hester missing but didn’t comment. They had invited her but hadn’t really expected her to come. She was much too uptight.

Castiel kind of understood. If he’d had the choice, he wouldn’t have come either.

He shuffled over and sat down. Anna had already ordered him a coffee, which he sipped gratefully when he sat down.

It seemed that Rachel had already gone through her espresso, if her jumping knees were anything to go by. Hannah had finished her green tea, and it looked like Anna hadn’t ordered anything. When Castiel asked, she explained she didn’t need the energy nor the sobriety the coffee would give her.

“Are you excited for tonight?” Rachel asked, breaking the silence. She turned to Cas, her smile bright and cheeks flushed. He almost wanted to lie just so he could keep that smile on her face. But, ever since he was young, he knew that lying was a terrible way to go about things.

“Not exactly.” Castiel answered, taking a sip of his coffee. Rachel’s face fell, Hannah didn’t look surprised in the least and Anna just frowned.

“I mean,” he hastened to clarify, “Social situations make me uncomfortable. But I do enjoy seeing you all.”

Rachel regained a little bit of her excitement. She smiled again and said, “That’s great! I was so excited to see you all too. That’s why I totally thought this was a great idea.”

Anna smiled gently at her younger sister.

“I thought so too. How long has it been since we’ve seen one another?” Hannah said, finally speaking.

“Well, I saw Rachel two weeks ago. I saw Castiel yesterday. It’s been almost a year since I’ve seen Hester. I think it’s around the same time for you and me too.” Anna point out, gesturing about.

Hannah just shrugged. “Taking care of our younger cousins up North takes up a lot of time.”

“I would expect so.” Anna nodded reassuringly. 

“How are they?” Rachel asked.

“Balthazar is finally growing out of his teenage ‘smartass’-ness. Well, mostly. Eve is beginning to hit puberty, which is fun for everyone involved. Samandriel is practically an angel. He’s the most relaxed and happy person I’ve ever met. And of course Uncle Zachariah and Aunt Naomi are swamped with work.” Hannah replied. And while her words were less then complimentary, her eyes showed affection for them all.

She, along with Rachel, actually liked their dysfunctional family. They liked to keep updated and were surprisingly invested. They visited Hester and hung out with their cousins, and at least attempted to call their estranged father and mother.

Anna and Castiel…not so much. They saw their family once a year at Christmas, and boy was that an adventure.

Castiel thought it was amazing how much they cared. And kind of wished he could care the same. But when half your family alienates you, older sister included, because of your sexuality, you learn to not care so much. So he watched from afar with fondness.

As for Anna, well…She had never gotten along with the family. She had never fit in. Even with their easy-going cousins. Her hot temper and high intelligence was bound to make her a few enemies. And once they shunned Castiel, she pulled away completely.

“Lovely.” Anna commented dryly, pulling him away from his thoughts. She picked at her black nails easily, avoiding the eyes of all at the table.

“Anna, you’re going to see them at the wedding. Might as well get used to that fact now.” Hannah pointed out, always the voice of reason.

“Yeah, why the hell did I do that again?”

“Wasn’t it Michael?” Castiel asked. He really hoped her displeasure of the subject matter didn’t ruin her mood. She was supposed to enjoy the night after all.

“Ah yes,” Anna nodded, smiling softly, “Too bad you can’t un-invite family from the wedding. Or your fiancé.”

“He’s kind of an important part.” Rachel giggled. And just like that, all the irritation from the table disappeared.

“So. How’s school going Castiel?” Hannah asked. All of his sisters turned to him.

“Good. Busy and slightly hard. But that’s something to be expected.” He answered with a shrug.

“So busy you can’t text your sister?” Rachel asked pointedly. Ah there it was. The question had been a trap.

“In fact, yes.”

“Let’s not get into this guys. We’re all here now, and we’re here for a special occasion! So let’s finish our drinks and get out of here.” Anna smiled.

Suddenly they were all children again, with their older sister telling them to play a game with her or do something for her. And like children, they all listened. They all finished their drinks, while Anna chatted happily about wedding arrangements. Sometimes, Rachel would jump in with a compliment or Hannah would ask a question. The rest of their hangout, which only lasted half and hour, was spent with smiles and excited conversation. Castiel felt at peace.

*

Until they got to the strip club that is. He should have known his happiness was never made to last. But he got cocky, and ended up stunned at the sudden change of atmosphere. The girls were still happy of course, but it became a rowdy happiness. Overbearing.

He reminded himself to keep breathing.

He smiled politely at Anna’s friends who piled in. He even said a salutation to those he knew, like Inias and Ruby. The latter gave him a devilishly wicked smile, as if she knew he felt out of place and uncomfortable. So he glared at her in return.

They all sat at a table, a party of eight, and ordered a round of drinks. Castiel still couldn’t quite believe that Rachel was old enough to drink.

The women talked among themselves, and Castiel shrunk himself as much as he could. He still didn’t understand why Anna wanted him there.

At least until she turned to him, and gave one of the largest smiles he had ever seen. While she wasn’t talking to him, she felt his presence and enjoyed it. And damn him, that was enough to please him in return.

*

The night wasn’t as boring or as upsetting as he originally thought. Jo, the Novak siblings’ childhood friend, arrived shortly after everyone settled. They caught up a little bit and laughed a lot. Eventually, she gave Cas a challenge. The one that happened every time they met up:

Who could drink as many shots as they could in a row?

Castiel always won of course. This time was no exception. Thankfully for him he had an amazing tolerance to alcohol, and was fifty dollars richer afterwards. He proceeded to use that to buy the shots that he and her just consumed. Jo just giggled in return, kissed him sloppily on the forehead, and went to talk to the others.

And while naked strangers never interested him, that night there was one exemption. A woman on stage, with untamed black hair, danced for the small party halfway through the night. She was different.

He wasn’t exactly attracted to her body, but he was attracted the inquisitive look she gave him. And when she sauntered near him, she smiled and said, “Hello, Clarence.”

That was enough for him to pay her to sit with him. Just so she could explain the reference.

He apparently knew her. She had been in the palates class he used to take, when he could afford it. She also thought guinea pigs were cute, which was a plus.

Later on, when the stripper (Meg, she said her name was) left, Anna came over to him. She rolled her eyes with a very amused smile on her face. “Of course you paid a stripper to talk with you. You’re awesome, you know that?”

He had an idea.

*

It was nearing 10:30pm, and he really wanted to leave. As fun as the night had been, he needed some time to himself. So he decided that after his conversation with Ruby, he’d leave. He listened to her chat about how much she disliked her mother Lilith, about how much she liked this girl named Bela, and how stripping was harder then it looked.

Just when she was finishing her rant, there was a scream. Startled, he looked towards the noise.

Most of the girls from the bachelorette party were at the stage. Money in their hands and excited smiles on their faces.

That’s when the purple curtains on the stage parted.

Three men came out. This made the women screech more.

“Oh.” Castiel said, and rolled his eyes slightly.

“I know right? The men are cute but nothing to be excited about. I found the ladies much hotter.” Ruby said, scoffing.

He had no preference.

He watched for a moment as the men began to dance. They moved sultrily and slowly, making their abdominal muscles move when they walked. They smiled invitingly to the women below, and the women grinned in return.

Someone British called over the speaker, “Say hello to the devilishly handsome Lucifer, the heavenly host Raphael, and the slick and sexy Deanmon!”

 _No consistency there,_ Castiel thought to himself, slightly annoyed. Seriously.

Each man nodded and grinned when their name was called. Lucifer, a blond man, shook his large hips at Anna. The red glitter decorating his body, but mostly congealed on his face, cascaded into her own red hair.

Raphael was a bald man who looked perpetually angry. But when he winked, the women giggled.

And ‘Deanmon’ was…

The man from the motherfucking bus.

Castiel choked on the Shirley Temple he was drinking. Ruby turned to look at him, eyebrows raised. “Found someone you like?”

He, of course, he shook his head. Except, maybe…

He was the kind man on the bus. The one that didn’t steal hundreds of dollars worth of books. The one who didn’t leer or get angry or do anything untoward when Castiel fell into his lap. From what he could tell, he was a kind man.

And Cas really liked that.

Deanmon was like fluid up on the stage, moving gracefully and effortlessly on the pole and off of it. Unlike his woman counterparts, he was barefoot and practically naked. He looked like he had practiced a lot to get where he was now.

Castiel felt himself wondering if this had been Dean’s dream in life. Strippers apparently made good money, most of the time, so perhaps? Or did he want to dance in general? Maybe not. He seemed like a stereotypical male. Cars and beer?

His mental image and his assumptions and his reality didn’t match up. None of it did. And for the first time in awhile, he wanted to know this man. _Really_ know him. Maybe enough to…but even if he didn’t, that’s okay. Hopefully.

After two or three songs of dancing, the men left the stage to mingle. Eventually Castiel looked away, and only knew the strippers were among them when Ruby poked him and pointed.

Anna was able to get a lap dance out of Lucifer, Raphael was able to work his way into the hearts of two women passing through, and Deanmon gracefully walked the floor. He talked to a few women of the party, a few males at the joint, but he didn’t stick with anyone. No lingering. And then he was making his way near Castiel—

“Hey, _Dean_!” Ruby practically screamed, waving her arms in the air.

He wondered how fast he could run.

It was too late though. Dean had seen him and Ruby, and he ambled over.

“Ah, isn’t it our unfriendly neighborhood harlot.” Dean commented dryly. He didn’t look at Castiel at all, which was both good and bad. He deliberated how stealthily he could crawl away.

“Aww, don’t be like that. Sammy and I just wouldn’t have worked out either way.” Ruby shrugged, taking a sip of her bourbon.

“What the hell ever princess. What do you want?” His body was no longer loose and graceful. It was taut and lean and aggressive. Castiel was seriously considering walking away.

“A lap-dance for my friend here.” Ruby grinned, patting Castiel’s shoulder.

Too late.

Castiel looked away from where he was planning his escape route and faced Dean head on. When they made eye contact, he nodded and stared. He couldn’t help it. It was something Anna had taught him from an early age, to ward off the bullies. _Always keep eye contact, and look like you might smite them where they stand._ She advised, after showing him how to throw a punch. Of course, he messed it up. He usually just slapped them and pushed them away instead.

None of that helped him now. Not when a kind man, not a bully, looks at him with puzzlement then shock.

“Am I interrupting something here?” Ruby asked, looking between the two of them.

Neither said a word.

“Fine, fine. Just talking to myself here. Here’s the cash for a lap dance, plus tip,” Ruby explained, putting the money in Dean’s pink panties, “I’m gonna go see if I can get some Haellion action.”

“But I—“ Castiel began to protest, but she was already gone.

“But what?” Dean asked, his voice as rough as it had been on the bus.

“I do not like sexual advances.” Most of the time anyways.

Castiel expected the man to laugh. Maybe point a little, have a good giggle, and then explain that there was no such thing as a man who isn’t into sex.

That didn’t happen. Instead Dean gave him a wide-eyed look and said, “I won’t do it if you don’t consent.”

Castiel sagged in relief, and fidgeted in his seat. Visions of April vanished and he felt like he could breathe again. “Thank you for understanding.”

“I can sit with you if you like, or something. Ruby paid for at least three songs.”

Castiel had to urge to grin like the Cheshire cat. But since that wasn’t in his character, Castiel nodded.

At least, he was pretty happy…until Dean sat on his lap. Immediately Castiel tensed up, his breath caught, and…

_What?_

Usually he panicked when stuff of this sort happens. Unexpected touching always petrified him. He loved to hug, and hold, and sometimes kiss, but if you did any of that without consent then he usually ‘freaked out’ quite a bit.

But this time…he was fine overall.

“You okay?” Dean asked, settling into his lap. He was close now, touching him almost everywhere. They were practically breathing in the same air. Up close Castiel could see freckles and green eyes.

“I didn’t know you’d be sitting on my lap.”

A blush quickly spread across Dean’s freckled face, and immediately he went to move. In return, Castiel did the unthinkable thing; he held the man closer.

There wasn’t anything sexual about the action. That was far from his mind. It was a different kind of want.

It had been a long time since he had human contact like this. ‘Cuddling’ as Anna called it. Barth had been a year ago, and Amelia had been a year before that. Thankfully, Amelia had liked to cuddle with him, and they did it all the time. Barth, not so much. So Castiel was seriously lacking in the human connection part of his life. And while his dog and cat helped, they weren’t exactly what he needed.

Dean had the potential to be.

“It’s all right. Are you comfortable, or would you rather sit beside me?” Castiel was all for consent too.

Dean gave a small smile. “I don’t mind. My boss will get less angry actually. He doesn’t appreciate when I sit with clients. Thinks I’m slacking off.”

“Meg was allowed to sit with me.” Castiel pointed out, frowning.

“That’s because she’s family. She and Crowley hate each other’s guts, but if he messes with her, then he messes with Lucifer and Alastair. And you don’t want to cross their path.” Dean explained. Castiel didn’t know if it was the light of the club or the little bit of alcohol in his system, but the man’s eyes seemed to dim at the mention. He didn’t like that.

“Unfortunate...I do not like the staff here.” He didn’t know why he said that. He couldn’t think of anything else to say.

Dean’s smile turned wide and playful. “Even me?”

“…You’re possibly an exception.”

“Hopefully. And if not, then I at least I was able to sit in your lap before you go. Return of the lap-sitting.”

Castiel blushed, and Dean threw his head back and laughed.


End file.
